October 2016

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Since the second half of the 20th century, some of my fellow Christians have been the most persecuted religious group in the world. They still are. You probably are surprised to hear this. That's because most of these persecuted Christians don't live in the West. They are, as the awful phrase has it, too foreign for the right and too Christian for the left.

In recent weeks and months, however, the West has heard about the plight of at least one set of these persecuted Christians: those in the Middle East. These communities, many of which date back to the very beginning of Christianity, are now facing outright extinction. And it's happening at the hands of ISIS, the West's Public Enemy No. 1.

It is in this context that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) indulged in what might be the most cynical and despicable political stunt of the year, which is certainly saying a lot.

A summit was held this week in Washington, D.C., in support of Middle East Christians, and Cruz was supposed to be a keynote speaker. However, right in the second paragraph of his speech, he began exalting Israel. After a while, the assembly started to boo and heckle him. Cruz said, "If you will not stand with Israel and the Jews, then I will not stand with you," and left the podium.

Keep in mind that many Christians in the Middle East are ethnic Arabs who live under Israel's occupation of the West Bank, and therefore have negative feelings about Israel. Of course, there are also many Middle East Christians who are supporters of Israel (indeed, there are even Arab Christians who serve, with distinction, in the Israeli Defense Forces).

As the excellent coverage, transcript, and recording provided by The American Conservative's Jonathan Coppage shows, the audience in Washington applauded Cruz's first lines of support for Israel and the Jews. The crowd turned against him only when it became clear that he was launching into a rah-rah pro-Israel stump speech that had nothing to do with what they were doing there.

Now, I am no Ted Cruz antagonist. I am a supporter of the Tea Party — it's done, on the whole, a world of good for the Republican Party by reinvigorating it and strengthening it. I even supported Cruz's push to shut down the government to stop ObamaCare implementation. And I am also a full-throated supporter of Israel.

But let's be clear about what Cruz was doing in D.C.: using one of the world's most beleaguered minorities as a prop for his own self-aggrandizement.

He's got more and attempts to rationalize Cruz' actions but in the end, for me, Cruz stepped in it and for what reason?

To in essence seal potential votes from people who likely would've voted for him anyway.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Among influential U.S. political tweeters, President Barack Obama is the undisputed king of the fake
followers. A MailOnline analysis ranks his sizable Twitter following as the most deceptive total among the 21 most influential accounts run by American politicians: More than 19.5 million of his 36.9 million Twitter followers are accounts that don't correspond to real people.

The four phoniest accounts in the sample, which included Democratic and Republican Party leaders in Washington, D.C., were those belonging to President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, first lady Michelle Obama and the White House communications shop.

Of the president's 36.9 million Twitter followers, an astonishing 53 per cent – or 19.5 million – are fake accounts, according to a search engine at the Internet research vendor StatusPeople.com. Just 20 per cent of Obama's Twitter buddies are real people who are active users.

Overall, the five most influential accounts linked to the Obama administration – the first lady has two – account for 23.4 million fake followers.

Biden's nonexistent fans make up 46 per cent of his Twitter total, with 20 per cent being 'real' followers. The White House's followers are 37 per cent fake and 25 per cent active; the first lady's primary account is 36 per cent fake and 29 per cent active.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Gay guy attempts to do gymnastics on the streets of Missoula, Montana and fails miserably. Then decides to use his self-induced injuries to further a cause and suck in the gullible. He succeeds if only for a short time.

A 22-year-old Montana man who told cops he was beaten up by gay-bashing thugs while club-hopping on his birthday — igniting calls online for protest against homophobic violence — made the whole thing up and actually injured himself, he admitted.

Joseph Baken, of Billings, suffered the bruises and cuts to his face when he smashed it against a curb while attempting to stick an Olympic-style backflip in the street, he said.

The young con-artist pleaded guilty to making a false report on Tuesday and was given a 180 day suspended jail sentence and slapped with a $300 fine, the Missoula Independent reported.

Baken's bizarre ruse began when he told Missoula police that three men jumped him outside a club in downtown Missoula early Sunday because he was gay.

Baken said he had gone into the club, announced that it was his birthday and asked if anyone knew a gay bar he could go to.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Aligning himself with a public fed up with economic uncertainty and Washington gridlock, President Barack Obama declared Thursday: "There is nothing wrong with our country. There is something wrong with our politics."

His toughly worded message - he said there was frustration in his voice, in case anyone missed the point - came amid a series of polls showing that people are disgusted with political dysfunction and are dispensing blame all around, including on Obama.

Obama aired his frustration with the ways of Washington at an event in Michigan before pivoting to his re-election campaign and a pair of big-money fundraisers in New York City.

He delivered a condensed version of that message at a fundraiser at the lower Manhattan home of movie producer Harvey Weinstein, where celebrities Gwyneth Paltrow and Jimmy Fallon, were among the approximately 50 guests who paid $35,800 each to attend.

Obama said he told his Michigan audience that it deserves better than what it's been getting from Washington.

"They look at what's happening in Washington and they think these folks are really from outer space because they don't seem to understand how critical it is for us all to work together, Republicans, Democrats, independents, in order to move this country forward," Obama said.

He added that the country is realizing the need to get involved.

"We're going to have to get engaged and we're going to have to speak out," Obama said. "We're going to have to register the fact that we expect more and we expect better."

So now Obama's an outsider. Now he's one of us, disgusted with what goes on in DC.

Friday, May 06, 2011

From Socyberty a four page Q & A with a “longtime Washington D.C. Insider” details the successful attack against Osama Bin Laden.

I’m only excerpting the beginning , you really need to go read the whole thing.

Q: You stated that President Obama was “overruled” by military/intelligence officials regarding the decision to send in military specialists into the Osama Bin Laden compound. Was that accurate?

A: I was told – in these exact terms, “we overruled him.” (Obama) I have since followed up and received further details on exactly what that meant, as well as the specifics of how Leon Panetta worked around the president’s “persistent hesitation to act.” There appears NOT to have been an outright overruling of any specific position by President Obama, simply because there was no specific position from the president to do so. President Obama was, in this case, as in all others, working as an absentee president.

I was correct in stating there had been a push to invade the compound for several weeks if not months, primarily led by Leon Panetta, Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates, David Petraeus, and Jim Clapper. The primary opposition to this plan originated from Valerie Jarrett, and it was her opposition that was enough to create uncertainty within President Obama. Obama would meet with various components of the pro-invasion faction, almost always with Jarrett present, and then often fail to indicate his position. This situation continued for some time, though the division between Jarrett/Obama and the rest intensified more recently, most notably from Hillary Clinton. She was livid over the president’s failure to act, and her office began a campaign of anonymous leaks to the media indicating such.

“Leon Panetta, director of the CIA, revealed there was a 25 minute blackout during which the live feed from cameras mounted on the helmets of the US special forces was cut off.

A photograph released by the White House appeared to show the President and his aides in the situation room watching the action as it unfolded. In fact they had little knowledge of what was happening in the compound.”

And finally from that same link, via Bookworm, who masterfully chronicles the misinformation of the last four days -

1) There was a firefight.2) There was no firefight.3) Bin Laden was “resisting.”4) Bin Laden wasn’t armed. (Makes the concept of “resisting” interesting.)[4.a) And the newest one: the SEALS thought bin Laden was reaching for a weapon.]5) He used his wife as a shield.6) His wife was killed too.7) He didn’t use his wife as a shield. She ran at a SEAL who shot her in the leg, but she’s fine.

When people say “something is wrong here,” they’re sort of right. The “here” in which the wrongness resides isn’t this specific news story. Instead, it’s an overarching pathology that we’re talking about.

That is, the SEALS did what they did. What’s driving everyone bonkers is that this administration is incapable of being straightforward. Serpentine deceit is its MO, regardless of the topic, whether birth certificates, health care debates, or sanctioned assassinations. Everything is wrapped in a web of lies and confusion because of the paranoia, personality disorders, narcissism, and sociopathy that walk the White House halls.

Tuesday, March 08, 2011

It seems our community agitator extraordinaire in the White House, when he’s not golfing, hosting concerts or meeting with union reps, is now also our Brewer-in-Chief.

Since I’m tight with O, he gave me some to taste.

The following is my review for the ‘Right Wing Conspirator News & Beer Review’:

Overall, what a major disappointment. After hearing from so many folks how incredible it was, I came away feeling the exact opposite.

I found it lacking in taste, rather watery, unsophisticated, of no real substance, if you will. At first it presented itself as something I might like, or at the least, acquire a taste for. But the more I drank, it became obvious that it wasn’t for me. (Though it definitely would appeal to the unsophisticated palate of the lite beer swilling hip, younger crowd.) The aftertaste lingered long afterward, became slightly bitter and left my taste buds unfulfilled. I couldn’t wait to go back to my old favorite suds.

The color was a light brown, sort of a cross between a Whit (Wheat) beer and a chocolate stout. Though obviously not intended or even ready for public consumption, the White House Beer Czar has mentioned that if it was marketed it would be identified as a stout so as to appeal to that more enthusiastic beer purchasing crowd.

The alcohol content was extremely low, close to nonexistent in fact, not that it could be verified. They deliberately left it off the label, along with the ingredient listing, for no apparent reason. (One is only left to wonder the reason for that.) Having redistributed, so to speak, the remainder of the six pack to a friend who prides himself on being open minded, he quaffed down a few in a short amount of time. While initially experiencing the slightest buzz, he said it quickly subsided. (Oddly, my friend said if it was available he’d continue to drink it, everyday in fact, because strangely, for no apparent reason, he just felt better about himself.)

When poured into a glass, the head was abundant, too much actually and it never subsided even after having sat for quite awhile. Indicating the classic mistake of inexperienced brewers - over carbonization.

To summarize; Barry’s Beer lacks taste, contains too much fizz, not enough pop and it’s assuredly not ready for primetime.

A couple extra notes; Incredibly, having not been officially qualified, it nonetheless took high honors at just about every European beer tasting competition, even though it wasn‘t available for the judges to taste. It was a huge success at the prestigious Berlin festival under the same peculiar conditions. No word yet on it’s domestic eligibility but rumor has it won’t be an issue since apparently anyone that matters has vouched for it.

Also, not satisfied with only one offering, there are plans for more beers, including - Pelosi Pale Ale “We brewed it first before we knew what was in it”, Michelle’s Extra Lite Beer w/Arugula “From my garden to your lips” and Reid’s Extra Special Bitter “You can never have enough“.

The White House has said it will soon discuss any and all beer questions at a future press briefing announcing the closing of Gitmo.

Thursday, February 03, 2011

Startup America is the White House initiative to celebrate, inspire, and accelerate high-growth entrepreneurship throughout the nation.

This coordinated public/private effort (see: Startup America Partnership) brings together an alliance of the country’s most innovative entrepreneurs, corporations, universities, foundations, and other leaders, working in concert with a wide range of federal agencies to dramatically increase the prevalence and success of America’s entrepreneurs. Startup America is an important element of President Obama’s overall innovation strategy.

The core goals of Startup America are to increase the number of new high-growth firms that are creating economic growth, innovation, and quality jobs; celebrate and honor entrepreneurship as a core American value and source of competitive advantage; and inspire and empower an ever-greater diversity of communities and individuals to build great American companies.

"Technically, we are all on the same team now, so why would a company that is working with us so closely on 'Startup America' or some of the other 'pro-business' projects we've been announcing want to give financial support for the campaigns of Republicans?" says a White House policy staffer who will shortly be moving to a new job at the Democratic National Committee's expanding 2012 campaign operation. "It's one more way to engage corporate America. We know many of the executives are predisposed to Democrats, this is just a way to build more connections."

Or more accurately, just another way to fool the gullible into thinking that this Administration is all about advancing America.

Chairman Qadeer Baksh said: "In hindsight, maybe I should have spent a bit more time with that person."

Police are searching a Luton house where Abdaly and his family lived.

Mr Baksh said he dealt with Abdaly four years ago, and that "there must have been something in between" that time and the Stockholm explosions on Saturday that influenced him.

A car, registered to Abdaly, exploded first about 1700 (1600 GMT), and then explosives attached to Abdaly detonated about 10 minutes later a few hundred yards away. Two people were injured in the second explosion.

Swedish officials described the attack as a "failure" as they believe he probably meant to detonate amongst a crowd, either at a railway station or in a department store.

Mr Baksh said it was very rare for the Luton centre, which incorporates a mosque on its premises, to expel any members.

He said when people expressed ideas which were extreme "it's a matter of dealing with them, challenging their theological basis, and making them realise this is not the Islamic point of view, and is not the way we look at life and the situation of Muslims around the world."

In all cases, they had succeeded in persuading them not to further their ideas - "except in this particular one," he said, referring to Abdaly.

We'll await the BBC follow-on investigation that will look into Mr. Baksh's assertions.

That's what Obama is going to do, according to Reuters, as part of his effort to show that the Federal government is "tightening its belt." Remember, we're just talking political appointees, not the army of untouchable bureaucrats that make up so much of public worker spending.

He may also, if possible, push for a salary freeze for political appointees, but we won't be going that far yet.